The row over an alleged fake federal agency in Nigeria has deepened after George Buchi Nwabueze released more documents which he says prove that the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office is legitimate. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) maintains that the office lacked presidential authorisation, while Nwabueze disputes that account and says the project has had links with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation for years.
The dispute follows an ICPC investigation which identified Nwabueze as the promoter of the organisation. President Bola Tinubu has ordered his arrest, according to the anti-corruption commission.
Nwabueze has now published a letter dated 19 July 2010 which was purportedly issued by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, known as the OSGF.
The letter. CREDIT: Nwabueze Buchi George | LinkedIn
The document was addressed to “Buchi George”, who was then described as executive director of The Hats Centre in Owerri, Imo State. It referred to a proposal for a “Made in Naija” project planned for Ireland as part of events marking Nigeria’s 50th independence anniversary.
According to the letter, the OSGF acknowledged receiving the proposal and advised that it should be sent to the Nigerian High Commission in Ireland for possible consideration.
Nwabueze presented the document as evidence that his Made in Nigeria initiative had links with the OSGF dating back 16 years.
PUNCH, however, said it could not independently verify the authenticity of the document. The letter as published also appears to concern consideration of a specific project proposal rather than expressly creating a federal agency or establishing a permanent government office.
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Nwabueze challenges ICPC’s ‘fake agency’ allegation
Nwabueze has repeatedly rejected the ICPC’s description of the organisation.
In an earlier response, he said: “Made in Nigeria Special Project Office is a project office in the OSGF. We don’t know where fake agency comes from.”
He argued that the initiative had existed since 2010 and questioned why it was only being challenged by investigators in 2026.
Nwabueze has also released what he described as an appointment letter dated 3 October 2025.
The document purportedly appointed him National Coordinator and Executive Director of the Made in Nigeria Project Office for a renewable five-year term. It was said to have been signed by Nadungu Gagare, then Permanent Secretary in the Political and Economic Affairs Office.
Another document dated 17 April 2025 showed that the project had sought formal Special Project status from the OSGF.
That document said the initiative was intended to promote Nigerian-made goods, encourage local production, generate employment, reduce imports and support economic diversification.
However, the request for special status does not by itself settle whether the organisation had already been properly authorised to operate in the form claimed.
ICPC says office had no presidential authorisation
The ICPC said it discovered the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office while investigating another organisation known as the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.
ICPC chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu said investigators found that the Made in Nigeria office had been allocated space inside the OSGF premises despite allegedly lacking presidential authorisation.
The commission described the organisation as an unauthorised government office and identified Nwabueze as its promoter.
The case has raised wider questions about how bodies presenting themselves as government organisations can obtain office space, engage public officials and operate within federal administrative structures without their legal status being quickly established.
The outlet has also reported on warnings about false claims presented as official government information, including a fake beneficiary list linked to the Niger Delta Development Commission. Read the NDDC warning on New Daily Prime
The conflicting claims in the Nwabueze case mean the documents will be central to determining what approvals were actually granted, who granted them and whether those approvals were legally sufficient.
An appointment letter, correspondence from a government office or access to government premises would not necessarily establish that a statutory federal agency had been legally created. Investigators will need to establish the authority behind each document and the administrative process through which the organisation operated.
Nwabueze has not been convicted of any offence in relation to the allegations. An order for arrest or an ongoing investigation does not amount to proof of guilt, and any criminal allegations would have to be established through the appropriate legal process.
